Nathan is a genius!! No one could fix my Bernina 1230 who insisted on sewing by herself. (No it wasn't the foot pedal.) I shipped her out to California as a last resort because she's my all time favorite machine. She returned today and she's sewing like a dream! Nathan somehow also fixed some pretty severe cosmetic scars from when she was accidentally burned. (Never leave a magnifying glass between your machine and a sunny window.). I am a very grateful customer! read more

Nathan really knows his way around repairing and adjusting sewing machines. He's knowledgeable in many different types of machines. I have a long arm quilting machine and he knows just what's going on with it just by telling him what the machine is doing incorrectly. He does house service too and stands by his work. read more

SOS Machines was recommended to me by my sister-in-law. A piece had fallen off of my bernina sewing machine and so I brought it to SOS for repair and general servicing of the machine. I am so happy with both the service and the quality. The machine is humming along like a dream. They were so easy to work with. I would highly recommend them. read more

If I could give this business 0 stars I would. On 11-3-22, I paid S.O.S. Machines $548.00 for a sewing machine. On 12-13-22, I received the sewing machine damaged due to the business's error of packaging the machine fully in plastic. The plastic had then melted on the sewing machine bed causing stickiness that prevents me from putting fabric on the machine in order to sew and use the machine. This stickiness on the sewing machine prevents it from being functional. On 12-14-22, the business confirmed that he would provide me with a full refund due to the damage to the sewing machine and the machine would be picked up soon. On 12-16-22, I asked for an update on the refund and the business owner suddenly changed his mind and refused to give me the full refund that he had already confirmed he would pay me back for. I still have not received a full refund for the damaged sewing machine. read more

First and foremost I would like to thank Nathan for the outstanding job he has done on a repair on my wife's sewing machine,regardless of machine age it was repaired in a quick and efficient manner, you are the best, again thank you Nathan, I would refer everyone I know with a sewing machine issue to your professionalism read more

I had my singer sewing machine repaired here. Very professional did a good job very fair price. Highly recommend SOS.

By the way, Yelp did not publish this review. WTF?? Does this look like spam or self generated? Idiots. This is a good guy, deserves the stars, help him out. Here is my improbable story. I was finishing up my covers and "dodger" for my sailboat, currently anchored on the West coast of Mexico. We have an old heavy duty Singer aboard, and it suddenly stopped making stitches. A day and a half of teeth grinding effort to find and fix the problem yielded only frustration. I remembered talking to Nathan more than a year ago, and although I never bought a machine from him or used his services, I was out of ideas and reached him via Skype as a hail Mary last ditch prayer. Nathan is a very good listener. After I laid out what was happening (or in fact NOT happening) he asked a few questions and give me a couple of suggestions. We motored our dingy back to the boat that evening and I tried his ideas. Bingo! read more

I was charged $85 to "fix" my beginner sewing machine. It turns out, the needle was placed in backward and the tension was off. Nothing else was wrong with it. After getting my machine back, it gave me 2 new problems that did not exist before. 1) The alignment is off, it kept pushing my fabric to the left as I sew. 2) The reverse stitching is no longer sewing properly like before. I'm disappointed. read more

My wife bought a restored Singer 301A from Nathan (S.O.S. Machines) through craigslist last year. Although Nathan works out of his house, we found him extremely professional in every way; and he has a true enthusiasm for old sewing machines and their repair and restoration. My wife's machine, though 60 years old, is solid as a rock and runs like a top. They built them to last in those days, but Nathan made it run like new. I got the impression that Nathan does not like to see good old sewing machines go to waste, and had made it his mission to buy old, unused machines that needed service and get them back into use again. Best of luck to him. read more

If I could give Nathan six stars, I would! He is a sewing machine magician. I found Nathan on Craigslist when I was looking for a vintage Elna sewing machine, and purchased an Elna Supermatic that he had completely refurbished. It runs better than a new machine!! I told Nathan about the Singer attachments I had bought for my vintage Featherweight 221 I had inherited from my aunt. The machine worked okay but the attachments were frozen. I brought them to Nathan and he babied them with his magic hands, oiled them and heated them, and now they work like a charm. I won't take my sewing machines anywhere else EVER AGAIN! If you are looking for a gorgeous vintage machine, or sewing machine service, Nathan is da man!!! read more

Wow. Nathan is so knowledgeable and helpful. You can tell he has a passion for what he does. So lucky I found him. I have a vintage 1940-ish Singer, handed down to me from my grandmother. Such a personal item to me, that holds so many beautiful memories. Nathan not only cared for my machine like his own, but he shared the same excitement I have for making this machine a functional and working antique. I live all the way out in Bakersfield, and he had me ship my Singer head to him. His work was timely and meticulous. He walked me through some questions I had, and even asked if I was able to attach the belt without any problems. Thank you Nathan. If I could give you 10 stars I would. Maybe one day I can take one of your classes! read more

Excellent customer service. Nathan-- the owner-- sells vintage sewing machines and also does repairs on sewing machines. He is incredibly capable and helpful. He offers beautiful machines at a fair price and even offers a 1 year warranty on them. After I bought the machine he even helped me thread it; I live out of town so I gave him a call and he patiently guided me through the process. Over all a great business for those interested in ensuring the longevity of a dying art. read more

S.O.S Machines offers vintage sewing machine sales and repair. I purchased my first sewing machine from S.O.S, which included a 6 month guarantee. As a novice, I truly appreciated how much time and care was provided in orienting me to my new purchase. I was delighted by their customer service, which included a friendly follow-up phone call. S.O.S is extremely knowledgeable and stands by their product/service. I highly recommend this company. read more

Nathan is THE BEST sewing machine repairman I have ever met. I brought him a Baby Lock ten needle embroidery machine. A 12 year old Kenmore sewing machine. A newer Baby Lock serger. A 1952 Singer Featherweight. Each one came back in better than new shape. He made a HOUSECALL after 7 pm, right before Christmas, to fix my embroidery machine, as it was shredding threads, and I was in the middle of Christmas present orders. He was here for many hours; he would not leave until he had figured out the problem and repaired it. It was not cheap, but well worth every penny. His kindness and expertise are amazing. No one gets to touch my sewing machines but him. read more

I'd like to give Nathan 6 stars, out of 5 possible :) Amazingly service-minded and skilled.

I needed a sewing machine. After several months of stalling and waffling and experiencing general anxiety about the issue (stress dreams) I committed myself to an enormous project. There was money riding on the completion of said project and I was thereby obligated to finally acquire a sewing machine. Like, a serious sewing machine that falls in a Venn Diagram somewhere between a Kitchenaid mixer and a Mercedes. I needed something that would not only survive an apocalypse but also survive me. Without going into too much more detail about the excessive emotional energy that I devoted to this topic, research led me to Craigslist, and Craigslist led me to SOS Machines. There were some impressive machines for sale, and of course there was also something about the business name that matched my inner state of emergency. Any reservations that I had about purchasing a vintage sewing machine on the internet were immediately put to rest with a phone call to Nathan; he was knowledgable and he was friendly and he was able to answer each of my highly detailed questions with equally detailed answers. We set up a time for me to drop by his shop, and when I arrived he devoted a great deal of his time - fielding questions, imparting information, and making sure that I understood and had a feel for the machine that caught my eye. May I say sewing machine genius? This is someone who can look at a stitch and tell you which machine produced it. This is the kind of person that clearly cares about these machines, their craftsmanship, and their fate. I walked away with a well-priced, amazingly refurbished, brilliantly performing vintage sewing machine with a 6-month guarantee - although I doubt that it will need any service for a very long time indeed. I emphatically recommend this business. read more

As someone who knew nothing about sewing machines, Nathan was both patient and understanding with my questions regarding the restoration of my grandmother's Singer 301A. As the work progressed along, I received updates involving what was going on and the projected timeline of completion. On the day of pickup, Nathan brought me into his home and gave me a crash course on both the restored machine and sewing technique. Rarely do you find someone so talented and passionate about their craft. Nathan is both a talented craftsman and an exceptional person. I highly recommend Nathan and SOS Machines, and look forward to much continued business in the future. read more

Nathan had my 1980 Montgomery Wards machine up and running in record time. I am very impressed w/how well it runs now. I highly recommend Nathan. read more

I have two old & dear sewing machines (born around 1950 & 1967) that have not been serviced in many many years. One was so gummed up that I could barely get the needle to move. I googled around and discovered Nathan, the wizard of vintage sewing machines. Not only did he work wonders on the machines, his price was very reasonable ($80 flat rate per machine, plus extra for materials like new belts), and he explained some mysteries about the machines that had eluded me. He's a young guy with an old soul and a deep resistance to planned obsolescence. A true calling ! Someone should write a New Yorker profile about Nathan. He's amazing. read more

While working on a project, our newer sewing machine decided to stop working. He was able to meet with us very quickly and fixed our problem for a limited cost! Absolutely great. read more

I feel compelled to write this review on Nathan's services. I have a newer industrial sewing machine that I brought with me when I moved from southern Cali, and there I had my own circle of people who could fix it and advise me on using it. I had been wondering what I would do when my machine broke as all do eventually. It's not a mainstream model either. I'm 9 months pregnant and of course the darn thing decided to break down in the middle of a project (well, I may have had something to do with that!). Carrying a 75 lb steel machine head into a shop was not a possibility in my state. Somehow I stumbled across Nathan's ad on craigslist being a purveyor and resurrector of antique machines and decided to take a chance and see if he would be willing to work on my newer industrial machine in my home. To my surprise he was willing to drive 50 miles on a holiday in heavy traffic to help me out. Sewing machine mechanics that travel to your home or place of business in the Bay area are pretty much impossible to find. Not only does he know his machines and truly loves what he does, he is also pleasant and professional to boot. He charges $100 flat for an industrial machine and .50 a mile. So for $125 not only did he fix my problem, he tuned up my machine and made sure it was in perfect working order. And the best part is that I didn't have to go anywhere. He spent two hours looking over my machine ensuring it was perfect, not just fixing the problem and leaving. In southern Cali traveling mechanics charge $80 an hour. I certainly feel like I got my money's worth and am thrilled to have Nathan on speed dial should I have any more problems. He even offered to walk me through a possible issue with using a different type of thread over the phone should I need his help. If you have an industrial sewing machine do not hesitate to call Nathan! read more

It is very rare these days you meet somebody that truly cares about they service they provide and the products they push..... Nathan at SOS Machines is one of those guys. After a long search for the right machine (as a complete beginner), I visited sewing shops in santa cruz and san jose. After being totally confused by just about everyone I talked to, I begrudgingly went to Craigslist. Wow, soon I found a master craftsman at SOS Machines, and a person that I could trust. By not having a storefront, Nathan keeps his pricing reasonable and is able to offer the customer service that used to make this country great,. After reading his ads, one gets the sense that this guy really cares about what he does. I was amazed and surprised to learn I could see so many vintage machines in Los Gatos, yes the upscale, everything is brand new, Los Gatos! SOS Machines was informative and responsive. If you are a beginner or an expert, I guarantee SOS Machines/Nathan will not disappoint! read more